Hudson River Flow Pattern (Winter 2018)

This is a fascinating video of the flow pattern of the lower Hudson River. This video was taken during the winter of 2018 and the floating ice allows for fairly easy viewing of the surface level currents of the lower Hudson. The 34 second time lapse video covers approximately 5 hours of actual time and was recorded around January 10, 2018. 

The lower Hudson is actually a tidal estuary, with tidal influence extending as far as the Federal Dam in Troy. There are about two high tides and two low tides per day. As the tide rises, the tidal current moves northward, taking enough time that part of the river can be at high tide while another part can be at the bottom of its low tide.



Strong tides make parts of New York Harbor difficult and dangerous to navigate. During the winter, ice floes may drift south or north, depending upon the tides. The Mahican name of the river represents its partially estuarine nature: muh-he-kun-ne-tuk means "the river that flows both ways." Due to tidal influence from the ocean extending to Troy, NY, freshwater discharge is only about 17,400 cubic feet (490 m3) per second on average. The mean fresh water discharge at the river's mouth in New York is approximately 21,900 cubic feet (620 m3) per second.